TONIGHT: “The Choice 2020: Trump vs. Biden”

We are six weeks from one of the most important and contentious elections in generations, and every day seems to bring a new outrage, controversy or crisis.

The latest: the political battle lines surrounding the replacement of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg following her death Friday. And of course, the grim milestone that the U.S. is nearing 200,000 deaths from COVID-19. No doubt there will be more crises in the days to come.

At FRONTLINE, during these turbulent times, we’ve been guided by an abiding commitment to step out of the chaos and help voters make their decision by doing what we do best: deep, contextual, long-form investigative reporting.

It’s what you’ll see tonight in The Choice 2020: Trump vs. Biden. In the run-up to every presidential election since 1988, we have presented The Choice, a documentary featuring interwoven biographies of the two major-party candidates. Each election cycle, the candidates have had their own unique themes. This year, there is no question: The theme is crisis.

In The Choice 2020, director Michael Kirk and his team zero in on how President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden each have been forged by their own personal crises, from childhood onward – and how those challenges have shaped their very different approaches to leading a nation now in crisis.

When you watch the film tonight, you will hear from friends, family, colleagues and critics of each candidate. You will learn how both men have responded to crises and conflicts throughout their lives. And you will come away with valuable insights into how each man would confront the enormous challenges facing whomever is sworn in as president in January 2021.

Our two-hour special The Choice 2020: Trump vs Biden premieres at 9/8c on PBS stations (check your local listings) and on YouTube; it will be available to stream on our site and on the PBS Video App starting at 7/8c.We hope you will watch.

You can learn about our approach to making this year’s installment of The Choice in today’s new episode of our FRONTLINE Dispatch podcast, a conversation between Michael Kirk and me:

In tandem with tonight’s premiere, as part of our ongoing Transparency Project, you’ll also be able to explore extended interviews with nearly 50 of our sources.

And stay tuned in the weeks ahead for new investigations of critical issues facing our democracy, including America’s Medical Supply Crisis on Oct. 6 and Whose Vote Counts? on Oct 22.